Israel: We Didn't Start the Fire

Today in international tech news: Israel says it is not responsible for the Flame malware that has spread throughout the Middle East. Also: Germany is in trouble with the EU for its failure to implement data collection laws, and PayPal continues its experiments as the company introduces a barcode payment system for mobile devices in the UK.

By David Vranicar
05/31/12 8:59 AM PT

Israel has disavowed itself of the cyberattacks recently discovered in Middle East, according to the BBC.

In UK, PayPal Launches Barcode Payments

PayPal has rolled out barcode-based payments at four major retail stores in the UK, according to Giga OM http://gigaom.com/2012/05/30/paypal-rolls-out-barcode-payments-in-the-uk/.

The feature, available for both iOS and Android, generates a barcode on a customer's mobile device. The barcode is then scanned by a store employees, and money is deducted directly from a customer's PayPal account. A receipt is sent via email.

Telefonica to Raise Cash by Selling Shares

Hammered by Spain's financial crisis and a massive plummet in value, Spanish telecommunications company Telefonica will sell shares in its German and Latin American phone units to raise cash, according to Bloomberg.

The company's market value has slumped by US$60 billion in the past 18 months, according to the report, prompting the move to sell shares. The company's stock had declined 34 percent this year through Wednesday. That was the single worst performance by any of the 19 companies in the Bloomberg Europe Telecommunications Services Index.

Standard & Poor's last week slashed the company's rating to the lowest level since its began ranking the debt 16 years ago, according to Bloomberg.

Intel-Powered Smartphone Set for UK Debut

A new smartphone from American chipmaker Intel and British mobile company Orange will be released in the UK on June 6, according to The Verge.

Tech Trek is a blog that looks at tech news from around the world. David Vranicar is a freelance journalist currently living in the Netherlands. His ECT News Network archive, with links to articles and podcasts, is
available here. You can email him at david.vranicar@newsroom.ectnews.com